The New York Times' Broken Moral Compass

The Times double standard and obsession with criticizing Israel moves into overdrive.

On August 21, 2012, The New York Times ran an article on the front page, above the fold, entitled "Young Israelis Held in Attack on Arabs" about seven Jewish Israeli teens arrested for beating several Arab teens – even sending one, Jamal Julani, to the hospital. In her coverage of this appalling incident, Isabel Kershner writes that

"the poisoned political environment around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has affected the moral compass of youths growing up within it."

By "youths," Kershner means only Jewish Israeli youths as she gives scant mention to any Arab on Jew violence, citing "suicide bombings that killed scores" as part of "the second Palestinian uprising" only in the third-to-last paragraph of the article, where she also writes that "in some of the tenser predominantly Arab neighborhoods, Israeli cars and buses are frequently stoned." Those mentions are in paragraph 27 of a 29-paragraph story and appear on the jump page, rather than page one.

Kershner bolsters her thesis that Israeli society is morally corrupt by citing the firebombing of an Arab taxi on the West Bank "apparently by Jewish extremists, though there have been no arrests," and by quoting educator Nimrod Aloni who says,

"This is directly tied to national fundamentalism that is the same as the rhetoric of neo-Nazis, Taliban and K.K.K."

If proven true, the accusations against the teens being held are despicable. However, to extrapolate from this reprehensible incident that the ethics of Israeli society as a whole are in question is quite a leap. That would be like indicting all of America for recent mob beatings that took place in South Carolina, North Carolina, Chicago, Virginia, Alabama, California, Baltimore, or New York City. In fact, though occurring much closer to New York Times headquarters, none of these events merited front page, above the fold, placement.

Double Standard

If the beating of an Arab teen is the result of the "the poisoned political environment around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict" and therefore warrants front-page coverage, certainly other incidents would warrant similar placement.

Recent attacks against Jews in Jerusalem were completely ignored by the Times.

In April, three members of a Jewish family were hospitalized after being attacked by a group of Arab teens with chains, clubs and a knife in a Jerusalem park. CAMERA research turned up no mention of this attack in the pages of the New York Times. Earlier that month, when a Jewish man was attacked with an axe by a Palestinian Arab youth outside of Damascus Gate in the Old City of Jerusalem, there was no mention of the attack in the Times. In March, a 19-year-old female soldier was stabbed by a Palestinian teenager on Jerusalem's light rail train; this news was reported by Kershner but ran as a brief on page five.

When five members of the Fogel family were slaughtered in the town of Itamar in the West Bank last year, the New York Times ran an Associated Press brief on page five. The next day, Kershner's article about the atrocity ran on page 16. Subsequent mention of this story in Times’ articles ran on page 4, page 6, page 15, and page 8.

One could fairly ask why the hospitalization of a single teen warrants more prominent placement on the pages of the Times than the savage, premeditated murder of five members of a single family, including the near decapitation of a 3-month-old infant. Certainly this attack also grew out of "the poisoned political environment around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict."

Societal Approval of Violence

It must be noted that the teens who are accused of perpetrating this inexcusable attack were arrested and face charges. In addition, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu phoned Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, before the beating but after the taxi incident and pledged to hunt down the perpetrators of the firebomb attack.

The Times depicts an entire culture that has been escalating toward racism.

This hardly indicates societal approval of such actions. Yet Kershner quotes Aloni describing, "an entire culture that has been escalating toward an open and blunt language based on us being the chosen people who are allowed to do whatever we like." Kershner describes "a national conversation about racism, violence, and how Israeli society could have come to this point."

Using media, education, and cultural structures that it controls, the PA has actively promoted religious hatred, demonization, conspiracy libels, etc. These are packaged to present Israelis and Jews as endangering Palestinians, Arabs, and all humanity. This ongoing campaign has so successfully instilled hatred that fighting, murder and even suicide terror against Israelis and Jews are seen by the majority of Palestinians as justified self-defense and as Allah's will.

The charter of Hamas quotes the Hadith:

The Prophet, Allah's prayer and peace be upon him, says: "The hour of judgment shall not come until the Muslims fight the Jews and kill them, so that the Jews hide behind trees and stones, and each tree and stone will say: 'Oh Muslim, oh servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him,' except for the Gharqad tree, for it is the tree of the Jews."

The Times’ Kershner is familiar with this incitement, having written about Palestinian Media Watch last year in an article that ran on page 16. Nowhere in that previous article does she question "how Palestinian society could have come to this point." Nor is the "moral compass" of all Palestinian Arabs indicted.

Media monitors have previously reported on the Times' obsession with criticizing Israel on its editorial pages – and obsessive hectoring and criticism that contradicts any rational view about what should warrant public concern and attention.

Now, this same policy is applied to the news pages. To run Kershner's story on page one shows a gross lapse in editorial judgment. Clearly, the story is newsworthy, but when it comes to Israel, New York Times editors seem oblivious to the rules of fair and unbiased reporting.

Note this comment near the top of this article: "By "youths," Kershner means only Jewish Israeli youths as she gives scant mention to any Arab on Jew violence, "
How on earth does Catz know that the Times journalist "means only Jewish Israeli youths"? I read the Times material as referring (rightly or wrongly) to youths on all sides.

(10)
prof. I.T. Young,
September 3, 2012 8:42 AM

Are we still expected, in fact chosen, to be "a light unto the nations? If so then we - the same we that we will utter repeatedly from Rosh Hashana to Yom Kippur - are obligated to be responsible for our own actions.
The above article echoes the childish excuse: "By 'youths,' Kershner means only Jewish Israeli youths as she gives scant mention to any Arab on Jew violence". I hear my children fighting and excusing themselves by saying that the other one started it. As children perhaps they are not yet responsible for their actions but teenage Jewish youths are.
And the subsequent statement shows that perhaps Jewish adults as well are in denial: "If proven true, the accusations against the teens being held are despicable." If proven true, it will not be the accusations that are despicable but the 'teens'.

Anonymous,
September 5, 2012 8:29 AM

No excuses, but that's not the point

Professor Young, the article above is very clear that there is no excuse for what the teens allegedly did, so i don't understand why it sounds like you disagree with it. The article above is about an important source of information that spins facts in a way that abusively distorts the perspective of the people who voluntarily buy it from them. In other words, it is not about whether the teens are good or bad, it is about whether the newspaper is good or bad.

(9)
Baruch,
September 3, 2012 5:32 AM

Yes, but...

Over the past 10 years, I have probably made over a thousand attempts to get my Jewish friends and family to stop buying the New York Times. 2 people did cancel, about 1% of the people I begged & cajoled. At the end of the day, The New York Times is a business, not a charity. If it prints this stuff and we want it so bad that we willingly pay for it, how can you write an article complaining about them? The New York Times moral compass is not broken, they are printing what the possibly broken moral compass of hundreds of thousands of Jews who love Israel are paying them to print every day. Aren't they?

Rafi,
September 3, 2012 2:23 PM

Dump the NY Times. Buy the Wall Street Journal

Absolutely right ! Many people continue to buy the New York Times even though they hate it. They believe it is necessary. Well, it is not. Habits are powerful, but they are not necessary. You can buy the Wall Street Journal if you have the habit of reading a newspaper, get a much more enjoyable experience, and you can quite easily forget the Times, and never miss it a bit.

David S. Levine,
September 3, 2012 4:06 PM

The Times Leads Society?

Baruch's assertions are a point ALMOST made. What unmakes it is that the Times' readership HAS significantly declined. Many HAVE gone "cold turkey" and expelled the Times from their homes.Just ake a look at how thin the rag is compared to how thinck it USED to be and you'll see how much advertising has declined (along with readership). If you want to keep up with new York, buy the Post or the Wall Street Journal. They're must more interesting, AND YOU WILL BE TOO!! Ha ha ha!

(8)
Chaya Passow,
September 3, 2012 4:56 AM

New York Times article from 1929

In 1929, there was a Friday massacre in Hebron of 71 Jews. Among them were several American young men studying in the yeshiva there. The Times ran an article saying that the victims were extremist Jewish settlers along with a few innocent American victims. Evidently, some things never change!

(7)
joseph salowitz,
September 3, 2012 4:55 AM

Man Bites Dog

There is an old saying about what is worthy of publishing in a newspaper: "When a dog bites a man, that's NOT news. When a man bites a dog, THAT'S NEWS!" The N.Y. Times was only following that dictum of newspaper publishing.

(6)
David S. Levine,
September 3, 2012 12:00 AM

The Most Evil Family

Before World War II Arthur Hays Sulzberger The First refused to feature news about Nazi Germany on the Front page above the fold. Indeed the Hearld Tribune published by the Reid Family had more news about what was happening to Jews in gemany at that time than the Times. The Sulzberger Family was ALWAYS hostile to the Jewish people and Israel and its reporters in Israel, particularly David Shipler and Serge Shemaman reflected this hostility. With the demise of the Kennedy family's political influence (not one member of that disgusting family holds public office today) the Sulzbergers have become the most evil family in America today. May all of them be denied a place in the world to come!

Anonymous,
September 3, 2012 2:29 PM

Yes, but what to do about it?

Don't buy the Times. Tell your shul and all your friends REPEATEDLY not to buy the Times. Never stop as long as the damn thing is being printed because they will never stop while they are in business.

(5)
Reuven Frank,
September 2, 2012 8:02 PM

No point.

Dear Sarit
I gave up on fighting this battle a LONG time ago.
Here is what the Gemorra has to say,
"Halacha Yadua, Esav Soneh et Ya'akov"
It is postulated as a known fact,
"Esav HATES Ya'akov"
I just pray harder for the day when our Holy, Righteous Moshiach (Redeemer) comes,
'cause that's the only way it's going to change.

(4)
Anonymous,
September 2, 2012 7:45 PM

press rumors

Thank you for this very suscinct article. It would appear the Kershner is confused about history and other particulars, as well.
It is the Arabs that are alligned with Nazi's (well known since WWII) and with firebombing as a devise of expressing their displeasure, even outside of Eretz Y'srael.
No one has yet discerned for me why these Israeli youth were incited to respond to the Arab youth in this hostile fashion. I have walked the streets of Jerusalem personally and am familiar with being harrassed (slammed into) by young Arab men/teens. Not a frenquent occurrance, but not unheard of, either.
It would behoove the press to control their knees from jerking, until the whole story emerges.

(3)
jacques cohen,
September 2, 2012 6:49 PM

I agree 100% with your writings

(2)
Fred,
September 2, 2012 4:35 PM

Times double standard

The Jewish community should stop placing advertising in the times.If jews are so "bad" they should not receive jewish money.

(1)
eugene,
September 2, 2012 3:39 PM

who cares about NY toimes except old tired US Jews

The Western world is in profound crisis; economic, moral, ethnic.
Still is obsessed with Israel and Jews. Israel is flourishing; in science, technology, emerging culture, economically. Yet Jews are wailing. They defeated Hitler, Stalin, Romans and wailing. Europe is swallowed by Islam and Israel is Ok and wailing. Don't know what to do with this sad situation. Iran, NYT seem not a big help. Bbetter answers should be found.

Joe,
September 3, 2012 12:02 AM

Poor Eugene

Eugene, you are pathetic and full of hate. Israel, and all Jews alike, being surrounded by angry Arabs and anti-semites like you, have flourished. In order to continue to do so, they must be ever vigilant. You sound like a tired old man.

I was born with a neuromuscular disease known as Spinal Muscular Atrophy and have been confined to a wheelchair my entire life. Unfortunately my sister and I were raised without any religious instruction or guidance. My father wasn't Jewish and although my mother is, she openly claims to be an atheist. The "good news" is that both my sister and myself - independent of each other and at different times in our lives - realized that we are Jewish and chose to live a Jewish life.

Because of my disability, I'm not always able to attend services on Shabbat, but I always light candles, pray from a Siddur and read the weekly Torah portion. I would like to know whether, considering my situation, if using a computer is allowed during the Sabbath? I found the complete Bible online and since my computer is voice-activated I don't have to struggle to turn pages or continuously ask for assistance.

Thank you to everyone at Aish.com for making it possible for myself and so many others to learn about being Jewish and grow in the most important part of our lives.

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Thank you so much for your encouraging words and for sharing your inspiring story.

God gives each of us a set of challenges. To those more capable of conquering difficulties, He gave bigger challenges. A challenge from God is a sign that He cares about us and has confidence in our ability to become great.

It sounds like you're doing great!

As for using the computer on Shabbat, that is prohibited. A foundation of Judaism is that we need to respect God's wishes, even if we think that doing otherwise is "for a good reason." Consider this story:

A king calls in his trusted minister and says: "I have an important mission for you to perform. Go to the neighboring kingdom and meet in the palace with their leaders. But remember one thing - under no circumstances must you remove your shirt during this meeting. Now go and do as I say."

The minister sets off on his merry way and soon arrives at the neighboring kingdom. There he heads straight for the palace where he meets with the King. In the midst of their discussion, he sees some of the king's officers pointing and laughing at him.

"Why are you laughing?" asks the visiting minister.

"Because we've never seen someone with such a pronounced hunchback as yourself," they say.

"What are you talking about? I'm not a hunchback!"

"Of course you are!"

"No I'm not!"

"We'll bet you one million dollars that you are!"

"Fine - I'll gladly take your bet."

"Okay, so take off your shirt and prove it."

At which point the minister remembers the parting words of the king... "under no circumstances must you remove your shirt during the meeting." Yet, the minister reasons, a million dollars would certainly bring added wealth to the king's coffers. I know I'm not a hunchback, so I'll surely win the bet. Of course, under these circumstances the king would approve...

The minister removes his shirt and proudly displays his perfect posture. With pride in his achievement, he holds out his hand, into which is placed a check for one million dollars.

The minister can barely contain his excitement. He quickly ends the meeting and runs back to give the wonderful news to his king. "I earned you a million dollars!" exclaims the minister. "It was easy. I only had to remove my shirt to prove that I wasn't a hunchback."

"You did what?!" shouts the king. "But I told you specifically not to remove your shirt. I trusted that you'd follow instructions, and so I bet the other king $10 million dollars that he couldn't get you to remove your shirt!"

The Torah tells us "Do not add or subtract from the mitzvahs." (Deut. 4:2) Jewish law is a precise metaphysical science. Consider a great work of art. Would you consider adding a few notes to a Bach fugue, or some brushstrokes to a Rembrandt portrait?!

Perfection, by definition, cannot be improved upon. Altering Torah law is an unacceptable implication that God is lacking.

The verse in Psalms 19:8 declares: "Torat Hashem Temimah" - the Torah of God is complete. For just as adding one wire to a transistor radio means it no longer can pick up reception, so too we mustn't tinker with Jewish law. The mitzvahs of God are perfect.

May the Almighty give you strength to continue your growth in Judaism.

In 1315, King Louis X of France called back the Jews who had been expelled a few decades earlier by King Louis IX. This marked a theme in Jewish-French life: expulsions and subsequent invitations to return. The French monarchy was trying to establish their land as the "new Jerusalem," and to fulfill this mission attempted several crusades to Israel. In 1615, King Louis XIII ordered that Christians were forbidden to speak with Jews, upon penalty of death. Eventually, in 1683, King Louis XIV expelled the Jews from the colony of Martinique.

Focus on what you do want. Make your goal explicit. “My goal is to increase my moments of joy.” This way, every single moment of joy is a successful moment.

Celebrate each moment of joy. Be grateful every time you experience joy.

Having this goal will place your attention on joy. Instead of feeling bad when you are not joyful, you will experience positive feelings about experiencing more joy.

Each moment of joy in your entire life is experienced one moment at a time. You can’t have more than one moment of joy in any given moment, but you can increase the number of joyful moments. How? By focusing on it.

There is no person on earth so righteous, who does only good and does not sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20).

Reading the suggestions for ridding oneself of character defects, someone might say, "These are all very helpful for someone who has character defects, but I do not see anything about myself that is defective."

In the above-cited verse, Solomon states what we should all know: no one is perfect. People who cannot easily find imperfections within themselves must have a perception so grossly distorted that they may not even be aware of major defects. By analogy, if a person cannot hear anything, it is not that the whole world has become absolutely silent, but that he or she has lost all sense of hearing and may thus not be able to hear even the loudest thunder.

In his monumental work, Duties of the Heart, Rabbeinu Bachaye quotes a wise man who told his disciples, "If you do not find defects within yourself, I am afraid you have the greatest defect of all: vanity." In other words, people who see everything from an "I am great/right" perspective will of course believe that they do no wrong.

When people can see no faults in themselves, it is generally because they feel so inadequate that the awareness of any personal defects would be devastating. Ironically, vanity is a defense against low self-esteem. If we accept ourselves as fallible human beings and also have a sense of self-worth, we can become even better than we are.

Today I shall...

be aware that if I do not find things within myself to correct, it may be because I am threatened by such discoveries.

With stories and insights,
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